In this episode of Inside the Funnel, host Hannah sits down with CJ, Director of Product for AI Workflows and Insights, to talk about the personal AI assistant he's building for Funnel teams. CJ shares what carries over from building generative AI across edtech and other industries, why keeping a human in the loop matters, and how the assistant can query your data, help you act on it, and eventually tell you where to focus. Along the way, they unpack the buzzwords operators keep hearing, like MCP and orchestration, and what they actually mean for running your business.

You'll hear from:

Hannah O’Leary, Communications director, Funnel

CJ Donio, Director of Product for AI Workflows and Insights, Funnel

In this episode:

• Lessons that carry over — building trustworthy AI on customers' data, keeping the UX simple, and always asking if a feature genuinely helps renters and leasing agents.

• A personal AI assistant for Funnel teams — query your data ("how many people didn't show up for a tour today?"), then act on it by assigning tasks or sending communications.

• Human in the loop — why the goal is to give teams a superpower, not remove the human, so agents can focus on relationships and one-to-one follow-up.

• MCP, explained — what the Model Context Protocol is ("an API for APIs"), why it's lightweight, and how it lets AI pull context from your PMS, partners, and Funnel.

• Granular permissions — how MCP connectors respect your existing Funnel login and access, down to the individual community level.

• Conversational BI for execs and data teams — querying Funnel data inside tools like Claude, ChatGPT, or Gemini and turning it into tables and charts.

• Bring your own app stack — building a robust integration platform so operators can keep the partners they love.

• Ramping new team members faster — using SOPs, KB content, Insights call coaching, custom scorecards, and adjustable automation to support newer teams.

• A look at the crystal ball — generative UI, where you describe the job to be done and the interface builds itself around it.

• Getting to know CJ — music, drums, a two-year-old, and why the people are his favorite part of Funnel.

Katie Harman, Enterprise Consultant at Funnel experienced multifamily from every angle (on site, in a contact center, in management, and as an operator implementing Funnel ) before crossing over to consult with some of the industry's largest operators.

Her dual perspective shapes how Harman helps property management companies rethink their operating models around centralization and AI.

In this episode

- The story of a Funnel partner who cut missed prospect calls from 45% to 4%

- How operators think about centralization differently six years in

- Why the right specialized roles free site teams to focus on touring, closing, and renewals

- Katie's take on change management, from earning trust at every level to navigating the hardest part of any rollout: user adoption

- Why the best AI strategy is the one built around people

The Report: Apartmentalize + AI orchestration

In this episode of The Report, Alex Howe, SVP Marketing + Growth at Funnel, and Tyler Christiansen, CEO, Funnel, recap the biggest conversations coming out of Apartmentalize in New Orleans — from AI orchestration and centralization to housing policy, REIT consolidation, and interest rates.

They also cover several major industry stories shaping multifamily right now, including:

• AI accountability: Why AI adoption is shifting from excitement about automation to accountability, governance, clean data, human oversight, and real resident experience outcomes.

• Property management software expansion: Why some AI-first companies are moving toward accounting and PMS software

• Housing legislation: What the latest bipartisan housing bill could mean for operators, renters, and the broader affordability conversation.

• Constrained investment volume: Why multifamily transaction activity remains cautious, even as operating fundamentals show signs of stabilization.

• Centralization’s comeback: Why operators are revisiting centralization with more pragmatism, clearer goals, and a sharper focus on measurable efficiency.

• AvalonBay and Equity Residential merger: What the $69 billion REIT merger signals about scale, shared services, centralized operating models, and the future of mega managers.

• Interest rates and development: How the Fed’s latest decision to hold rates steady could continue to pressure new apartment development — and why that may set up future rent growth volatility.

For more on Funnel’s Apartmentalize announcements: Workflow Studio, Funnel’s custom renter workflow builder. Watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5cFdtOyhQI

For the results of a third-party blind user test where 169 real renters compared Funnel’s chat and voice AI against three major competitors. Read the press release, or listen to this episode of the report.

To learn more about Funnel visit: https://funnelleasing.com/

Connect with Tyler on LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/in/funnel/

In this episode of The Report, Alex Howe, SVP Marketing + Growth, Funnel and Tyler Christiansen, CEO, Funnel share the results of a study they commissioned to answer a simple question: how does Funnel's AI stack up against the biggest names in the industry?

In the spirit of the world's best teams competing at the highest level, they put Funnel's voice and chat AI to the test — independently, blindly, and against competitors' best examples.

Funnel won every single matchup. The more interesting story is why — and what it signals about where multifamily AI is headed.

The setup:

• An independent research firm ran six blind, head-to-head studies in April and May

• 169 real American renters tested Funnel’s chat and voice AI against three major competitors: two legacy property management platforms and a self-described "AI leader" in multifamily

• Renters had 30 minutes and a broad mandate: schedule a tour, ask about pet policies, and interrupt the voice AI mid-sentence to see how it responded

By the numbers:

• Funnel won all six head-to-head matchups

• Nearly 3 in 4 renters preferred Funnel's chat AI; 2 in 3 preferred Funnel's voice AI

• 81% said Funnel felt more knowledgeable in chat; 67% said the same in voice

• In chat AI, Funnel outperformed the competition by 6-27% in renter satisfaction and 7-52% in human-likeness.

• In voice AI, Funnel outperformed the competition by 5-10% in renter satisfaction and 4-27% in human-likeness.

Four themes renters mentioned often

• Warmth. Competitors were described as "abrupt," "formal," and — my personal favorite — "the audio version of a brochure."

• Transparency. Funnel answered questions about fees, breed restrictions, and community specifics directly in the conversation. Competitors sent renters to links. Renters noticed, and they didn't like it.

• The ability to actually listen. In voice, renters could interrupt Funnel, pause, change direction — and Funnel kept up. Competitors talked over them. That was the single biggest complaint in the voice study.

• Anticipation. Funnel volunteered relevant details before renters had to ask. It felt like the AI was thinking ahead, not just responding.

Fresh off Forum 2026, Alex Howe, SVP of Marketing and Growth and Tyler Christiansen, CEO of Funnel, break down the biggest ideas, conversations, and moments from this year’s event. They cover what stood out from sessions with Clay Bavor, Jay Parsons, Kristy Simonett, Mia Hamm, and others, along with what operators should be paying attention to right now around AI, market conditions, leadership, and change.

To stay up-to-date follow Funnel on Linkedin and connect with Tyler there, too.